“As a novice making religious profession, I placed my trust in God, as expressed in the words of Eph. 3:20: Trusting in God’s love, whose power at work within us is able to accomplish far more than we can ask or imagine,” Sr. Mary said. “These words of scripture have been fulfilled through the joy and laughter of children, the compassion and love of faith-filled holy persons with whom I have been blessed to walk in ministry and the overflowing gratitude and peace God has placed in my heart through the lives of each one whose life has touched mine.”

Sister Mary, a native of Columbus, spent her ministry in the education and development of young children. She has taught in grade schools in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Illinois, and serves today as the Media Specialist and Parish Volunteer at St. Matthias Parish in Columbus, OH.

In speaking of her 50 years of school and parish work, Sr. Mary says, “The faces of the little ones and immigrants new to this country, with their trust and openness, truly reflect God’s tender love and allow me to glimpse God’s face more clearly.”

One of the greatest gifts of Sr. Mary’s religious life was a visit to the lands of Dominic, founder of the Dominican order, to walk in the footsteps of St. Dominic and St Catherine of Siena. For Sr. Mary, this experience brought to life Dominic’s commitment to link preaching and radical poverty. “Dominic placed the details of his fragile and vulnerable community in God’s hands,” Sr. Mary says. “Today, as in the time of Dominic, we are, through the power of the Holy Spirit, being called to walk our journey leaving the details in God’s hands.”

Sister Linda Lee, a native of Philadelphia, PA, entered the Dominican Sisters in 1989. She credits her maternal grandmother, Martha, for showing her how one’s life could be lived as a faith itself. “She was widowed at an early age,” Sr. Linda Lee explains, “so she had to make life-changing decisions in her 30’s, just as I did. The faith that she lived every day inspired me.”

Sr. Linda Lee’s ministry has been one of spiritual guidance and support, as she has served in retreat centers in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey and Florida. She also served as Campus Minister and Spiritual Director at the University of Dayton in Dayton, OH. “My own life experiences helped me to become more empathetic in my work as a source of spiritual enrichment for women,” she says. “Every choice that I made throughout my life led to my choice to become a Dominican Sister.”

“If I could offer today’s young women who are entering consecrated life one piece of advice,” Sr. Linda Linda Lee says, “First, pray. Pray to find your passion. Then find a group of women who support and feed that passion, with openness to new calls. Find a community that can inspire and empower you.”

A native of Columbus, OH, and a graduate of St. Mary of the Springs Academy, Sister Mary Ruth entered the order after high school, and made her first vows in 1967. She completed her undergraduate degree at Ohio Dominican University in Columbus.

Sr. Mary Ruth’s greatest passion is the education of the poor. This is reflected in her early work as a grade school teacher in Puerto Rico and Ohio, as well as her current ministry as the Math Program Coordinator and Tutor at the Dominican Learning Center in Columbus, OH.

“I have found my niche at the Dominican Learning Center,” Sr. Mary Ruth said. “I feel that my gift of teaching helps people who are struggling to have a better life. I love working with adult learners – they are happy to be learning and grateful for all we do for them.”

Sr. Mary Ruth ministered at St. Thomas Parish in Zanesville, OH; the Diocesan Charismatic Renewal Center in Columbus, OH, and the Athenaeum of Ohio at Mt. St. Marys Seminary in Cincinnati, OH. She also served at Steubenville, OH, at St. Anthony’s School.

At the occasion of her Jubilee, Sr. Mary Ruth is grateful for her vocation and to her family for her solid grounding in the Catholic faith. “Being a Sister puts me in a unique relationship with God’s people,” she said. “They see me as His representative, and they know that they can count on me to share my relationship with God as a way of communicating His love for them.”

Sr. Nancy, a native of Lancaster, OH, entered the Dominican Sisters while she was a student at St. Mary of the Springs College, now Ohio Dominican University. She traveled across the United States during her life as a consecrated religious, working and teaching in schools and churches in New York, Michigan, Georgia, Kentucky, West Virginia and Missouri, and studying in California. One of her most memorable experiences was a summer spent in ministry to the Northern Cheyenne Native American in Lame Deer, MT.

“I loved being an itinerate like St. Dominic,” says Sr. Nancy. “I have met scores of wonderful people and become a better person because of it. For me, the many faces of the people that I have met make up the face of God – and each has left a mark on me.”

Sr. Nancy credits her mother as being the greatest influence in her life and her vocation. “My vocation began at home, with my mother. Her spirit of giving – her willingness to be approachable and to listen – she was an influencer in my life until the day she died.”

Today Sr. Nancy serves as Assistant Principal at the Holy Trinity Catholic School in Somerset, OH. In that capacity, she has the opportunity to meet many young men and women, and she has this to say to young people considering religious life today: “Take advantage of your ability to, and any opportunity to, give of yourself. The more you give, the more you will receive in return, and your life will be enriched.”

Sr. Marietta, a native of Columbus, OH, entered the Dominican Sisters in 1967. She credits her parents, Claude and Lillian Miller, and their strong faith in teaching her to follow the way of Jesus. She says that she has always tried to bring peace into her part of the world by sharing the Mass, the Rosary, and Vespers. When asked to describe what is most important to her, she replied, “Prayer and peace – and being where God wants and needs me … that’s me in a nutshell.”

Sr. Marietta ministered at St. Anthony’s in Dixon, NM, Our Lady of Guadalupe in Velarde, NM, and St. Anne’s in Santa Fe, NM. The families there remain very dear to her heart and are always in her prayers.